Week 24

I am back from my OB appointment. Everything went great. Baby A’s heartbeat was 155 and Baby B’s heartbeat was 160. Everything looked good for me and it was a very fast appointment. She said that the next time she wants to see me is May 3rd. So I will go back then to see both her and the Maternal Fetal Specialist. We are currently 24 weeks pregnant and she said that from here on out, if the babies were to come early, while there could be complications, they most likely would survive outside of the womb, which means this is a very important time in the pregnancy. The babies are both kicking and moving up a storm.

 

 

 

Also—at my next appointment, I will have to do the glucose testing, which is to check for gestational diabetes. I have never had issues with it and don’t expect to now either. Everyone at the clinic is VERY excited to see you guys in a few weeks and finally meet the daddies of these two little men.

Here is a few belly shots for 24 weeks: don’t mind the stretch marks---they are battle scars from the last three pregnancies...I haven’t really gotten any new ones so far, but I am sure that will be changing over the next few weeks!

 

 

The first major milestone is 24 weeks: the threshold of viability. Babies born this early will likely spend at least three months in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), and a third of them will survive with no long-term problems.

By 24 weeks your twins are proportioned like newborns but thinner - their "baby" fat hasn't yet developed. Although they're getting heavier every day, their skin still appears wrinkled because they need to gain more weight. Their lips are distinct and their eyes are formed, though the iris (the coloured part of the eye) still lacks pigment. The pancreas and the thyroid, adrenal and pituitary glands, essential in the production of hormones, are developing steadily. Tiny eyebrows and eyelids are now visible.

Even this early, the first signs of teeth appear in the form of tooth buds beneath the gum line. Before you know it, your twins will be born, and soon after, their first teeth will come through.

 Your twins' lungs continue to develop and mature to prepare for breathing. They're swallowing but they normally don't pass their first stool (called meconium) until after birth. Your babies are making breathing movements. They have no air in their lungs yet but it's essential practice for when they are born.

More than half of twins are born before term (before 37 weeks). If your babies were to be born before 24 weeks, they would only have a small chance of survival (less than 10 per cent) even with the right care. Every day in the uterus makes a difference at this stage. Their chance of survival rises rapidly after 26 weeks, and from 32 weeks they should survive if they are growing normally.